Which is the Calamity Jane: the Jane
who causes the calamity or the Jane who predicts it?
Etymology, Etymology, and more Etymology
as well as grammar, usage, euphemism, slang, jargon, semantics (meaning), linguistics, neologism, idiom, word origin, syntax, dialect, lexicon (vocabulary), diction, pidgin, synonym, antonym, homonym, cant, argot, lingo, and redundancy.
The critically-acclaimed board game
MooT
consists of tough questions about the nuances of the English language.
Answer:
the Jane who predicts it
According to the Concise Oxford
Dictionary, a prophet of disaster is a Calamity Jane. The name was
coined as a nickname for Martha Jane Burke, an American marksperson.
According to the Life and
Adventures of Calamity Jane (By Herself)
"After that campaign I returned to Fort Sanders,
Wyoming, [and] remained there until spring of 1872, when we were ordered out to
the Muscle Shell or Nursey Pursey Indian outbreak.
In that war, Generals Custer, Miles, Terry and
Crook were all engaged. This campaign lasted until fall of 1873. It was during
this campaign that I was christened Calamity Jane.
It was on Goose Creek, Wyoming, where
the town of Sheridan is now located. Capt. Egan was in command of the Post. We
were ordered out to quell an uprising of the Indians, and were out for several
days, had numerous skirmishes during which six of the soldiers were killed and
several severely wounded.
When on
returning to the Post we were ambushed about a mile and a half from our
destination. When fired upon Capt. Egan was shot.
I was riding in advance and on hearing the firing
turned in my saddle and saw the Captain reeling in his saddle as though about
to fall.
I turned my horse and galloped
back with all haste to his side and got there in time to catch him as he was
falling.
I lifted him onto my horse in
front of me and succeeded in getting him safely to the Fort. Capt. Egan
on recovering, laughingly said: "I name you Calamity Jane, the heroine of the
plains."
I have borne that
name up to the present time."
I have no idea and have been able to find no source
that explains or tries to explain how the denotation "prophet of disaster"
eventually became attached to Calamity Jane's name. Perhaps the "Calamity" part
led English speakers to naturally gravitate towards a usage that made the
phrase more meaningful.
Please note that these are draft questions for the board game MooT.
If you spot an error or disagree with anything I've said here,
please let me know and I'll fix it.
(the Mootguy)
Feedback
My Webster's New World Dictionary lists only the proper name, with
no denotation or connotation. I've never heard it used as a synonym for
"Cassandra," which I thought had held that ground unchallenged for a few
thousand years. So I wonder how widespread the usage you report is.
All MooT questions are base
on definitions derived from the Concise Oxford
Dictionary.
x-dassori__aol.com
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You might want to check into the history of the old west as well;
while your rendition of the coining of "Calamity Jane" may have substance,
The passage was written by Calamity Jane herself ?
have you got a better source?it is equally true that Calamity Jane was
a diseased carrying woman that infected many men in her day; it was my
understanding from historical texts and references to such, that that was
inasmuch a reason for being called Calamity Jane as her wild west adventures.
What is your source? I urge you to check
some of the historical facts. There was also a show on A&E or history
channel recently that subordinated these thoughts; something to do with the
Wild West and sexual practices of the women there.
x-willisl__vt.edu
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Hmmm! I don't know about this suspiciously folky etymology.
It was written by Calamity Jane. She IS the
authority on this etymology. I'm almost old enough to have ridden with
Calamity Jane, and for as long as I've been aware of the term, a Calamity Jane
is someone who is attended or accompanied by... calamity, whether causing it or
not.
x-jffriesen__shaw.ca
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In reference to Willis's letter about
Calamity Jane being so-named because she "was a disease-carrying woman that
infected many men": I believe he's getting her confused with Chlamydia
Jane.
Her presence at high-school parties in my
neck of the woods was indeed both an accurate predictor AND a cause of
calamity.
x-jacko__lycos.com
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